3. Jimi HendrixBand Of Gypsys
You know, I loved the early records, Axis: Bold As Love, loved Electric Ladyland; it was fantastic. I loved his bravado and the feedback. All his guitar playing is amazing, but seeing him do ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ at Woodstock, you know, that’s pretty amazing. And also at Monterey Pop, when he sets fire to the guitar, for me, when I first saw that…
It was kind of a punk gesture.
Yeah, absolutely! He was a one-off. And I’ve heard people argue, "where’s the great song?" I think there are some great songs. ‘Crosstown Traffic’, ‘Purple Haze’; a lot of great songs, but the thing you really remember him for are those really wonderful, show-off performances. Those are the things that stick in your mind and Band Of Gypsys is brilliant. It was one of the last things he did. The thing about it is that Buddy Miles and Billy Cox were the rhythm section. They’re simple, cool, kind of funky, repetitive, groove-orientated and it was great to see Hendrix finally discover that aspect.
